My Current Presentation Tools

I usually make three to four major presentations a month. In January, for example, I made presentations at our Quarterly Business Review Meeting, our All Employee Meeting, and The Thomas Nelson Way session. In February, I will make four presentations.

I often get asked what tools I use to create my presentations. Currently, I am using eight:

Come Run with Me!

Many of my running friends like to run with groups. Frankly, it has never appealed to me. When it comes to running, I am a “Lone Ranger.” I like running alone and listening to audio books.

But two weeks ago, I decided to participate in Powered by Hope’s team run on Saturday here in Nashville. This is training that they are providing through the Jeff Galloway organization for those of us at Thomas Nelson who are participating in the Country Music Half Marathon in April.

Creating an Annual Time Block

Stephen Covey tells the story in First Things First of attending a seminar, in which the instructor pulled out a wide-mouth gallon jar. He sat it on the table next to some fist-sized rocks.

“How many of these rocks do you think we can get in the jar?” he asked.

My Most Popular Posts of 2008

Since the first of the year, I have seen several bloggers post links to their most popular posts for 2008. I decided to post mine in case you missed these when I originally wrote them.

Since TypePad, my blogging service, doesn’t provide this kind of statistical information, I had to look elsewhere. In the process, I stumbled across PostRank, a service that “measures engagement by analyzing the types and frequency of an audience's interaction with online content.”

Getting Things Done: An Update

I have long been a fan of David Allen’s Getting Things Done™ (GTD). If you are serious about increasing your productivity, this is the one book you must read. His methodology is the most effective I have seen.

I have written extensively on my implementation of David’s system. Here is a sampling of previous posts:

What Have You Been Putting Off?

I cleaned out my bedroom closet this morning. I’m not sure what got me started. But once I got going, I couldn’t stop. I literally got rid of half my stuff.

I can’t tell you how good I felt after clearing out all this clutter. With the recession, less is the new more.

Some Twitterers Worth Following

I started Twittering on April 5, 2008. What started out as a 30-day experiment, has now turned into part of my daily life. I have written about 12 Reasons to Start Twittering. I even created A Beginner’s Guide to Twitter.

So far, I have more than 1,600 people following me, but I only follow about 180. (Some people, for reasons I can’t fathom, think that they must follow everyone who follows them. I do well to keep up with the people I am following.)

The Wealth Wall Street Can’t Touch

I watched in amazement this week as the stock market continued its downward slide. Every time I checked the news, I braced myself for increasingly dire reports. When the market finally closed on Friday afternoon, I breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that the DOW did not end below 8,000 points.

While the week’s drama had been unfolding on Wall Street, Gail and I were safely tucked away in the Rocky Mountains, spending a few days with several dear friends and industry leaders. Naturally, we talked about the financial crisis, but we also shared some wonderful times of fellowship. We spent most of our time talking about more transcendent issues—things that matter deeply to each of us.

My Daily Reading Habits

I love reading. I guess that’s why I got in the publishing business to begin with. After almost thirty years, I am still a content glutton. I have in insatiable desire for input.

I read all kinds of stuff: books, the Bible, magazines, newspapers, blogs, and even microblogs like Twitter. I also read a wide variety of genres. My tastes are very eclectic. Mostly, I just enjoying discovering and experiencing new things.

Life Is Like a Tapestry

This morning I had breakfast with Fitz, an old college roommate. We hadn’t seen each other in twenty-two years. To my surprise—and delight—he looked almost exactly as he did the last time I saw him. The only difference was that his blond hair was mostly gray.

We spent an hour or so eating and reminiscing. We talked. We laughed. And we listened. I shared with him pictures of my family, both of us laughing at the fact that I was a grandpa. I was amazed at how much we still had in common, even though both our lives and taken so many unexpected turns.